My Lal is Most Beautiful
by Destiny Aitsuji
Summary: A Col x Lal for how Colonello fell for Lal before they became Arcobalenoes. It will be a little angst and fluff mixed. No M rated, reviews are lovely.
1. Chapter 1

**My Lal is Most Beautiful**

**Chapter 1  
**_  
__Colonello's POV__  
_  
Lal... the first time I saw her I was given a kick in the face. However, more than the initial shock and pain, what caught my attention most were those fiery eyes and that feisty temper. I liked woman with an attitude. Good woman were hard to find.

My last girlfriend had been a Yakuza's daughter. She might have a personality but it was still too mild for my liking. I wanted something more extreme, someone who would keep me on my toes at all times, someone explosive.

Then I met Lal on a secret mission. She was beyond gorgeous. If anything she had to be an angel in disguise, a strong one at that. I was made to join the army force's special team to perform special mission no ordinary human can accomplish. Lal was the trainer and it totally changed my impression of women.

This woman had worked me to the bone mercilessly and practically broke down my pride as a man. I wasn't weak at all but compared to her, I felt like a wimp. She was Spartan on us and her believe that the world is a harsh place spurred her sadism.

I thought I would die after the first week of training. We hardly had time to rest, hardly had time to eat and much less sleep. It was worse than hell. I would have gladly given up if not for the fact that I wanted to become strong enough to court her.

I needed to become the man to be able to protect her. Perhaps nobody saw through that tough exterior but I knew that deep down, she was still a woman who felt insecure about some things. The occasional acts of kindness which nobody noticed and the effort she put into training all of us so we could preserve our lives on the battlefield were overlooked by the others. I saw them all.

For three months straight I did extra training on my own at night when everyone else were busy sleeping. I wanted to get stronger faster to get closer to her. However one night, fate decided to bring forward my wish to get closer to her.

"Recruit Colonello! What do you think you are doing? It is already lights out! Why are you still here?" Lal barked.

I stopped my exercise routine of doing push ups and stood up in attention position. "I was doing some extra training ma'am!"

Lal scowled at me and said "You are always lacking behind your friends in everything. You have got zero potential to become a special operations soldier. Go to sleep recruit. I suggest you think about it and quit this as soon as you can. I don't need you to be cannon fodder on the front line."

Her words stung me badly. Meat shield for my comrades would be bad enough but cannon fodder? I clenched my fist tight. I'll show her that I am not cannon fodder. I will prove that I can be a man capable of protecting her.

On the day of the mission I went with her and the team to annihilate a fire arm trading operations from the mafia and terrorists. I had been careless in stealth and was spotted and crossfire soon ensued.

The aftermath of the crossfire was three of my team mates dead and two other injured, including Lal. The operation was a success with the price of three deaths and two casualties. The journey back was a solemn one.

Lal had pulled me out from the team and told me "Quit the team."

I felt heart broken and humiliated thoroughly. "I'm sorry."

"I will see you gone by tomorrow," she stated coldly. This was not going as I expected.

At night I thought long and hard then made a decision.

Sun rose the next day and I was already on the circuit course. Lal saw me training and pulled me to a side. "I thought I told you to leave!" she snapped angrily.

"I know I'm in the wrong but please at least give me a chance," I begged.

"No! You have zero potential and your team mates had to die because of some pride of yours. I will not allow you to stay here and endanger the lives of your team mates."

I was desperate when I told her "Three months. Train me for three months personally. I'll show you that I can do it. If I can't, I'll leave for good."

Lal seemed to reconsider my offer and then turned her back towards me and walked off.

"Please!" I dropped to my knees. "I just ask for three months, just three months. I can do this!"

Lal stopped and paused for a very long time.

"Fine!" she snapped. "Three months is all you have. If you can't make it, you will leave. No more bargaining is that clear?"

I nodded. The resolve reflected in my eyes.

"Training starts tomorrow."

I watched her figure disappear before heading back to the dormitory to pack. I have three months to win her heart. That was all I needed.

**Author's Note: Thank you for reading~ Phew. This series will be continued and yes, it is my second Col x Lal fic. It started off as a fic for a fan but the idea was too good for a one shot so I extended it **

**Reviews are lovely so please review :3**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_Colonello's POV_

The first two months I spent there were fruitless. I was disappointed with myself for not being able to keep up with her Spartan methods at all. I did not want to back down but at the rate that we were progressing at it was hopeless. I would never be able to surpass her, much less capture her heart.

Lal was merciless when it came to training. It was difficult for me to keep up with her. My physical was not weak but somehow I just could not match her pace of doing things. It was too careful. It was too rigid and it felt dead. I simply could not adapt to this system. However I did my best to follow the orders. It did nothing to improve my progress at all.

_Lal's POV_

It has already been two months yet this man has shown no progress at all. I knew he was all talk yet somehow the look in those eyes that day told me otherwise. I had been foolish to think that he had potential at all. This is pointless. After three months with me he will just quit and leave for good. Perhaps it would be better for him to leave everything behind and live a life that doesn't require him to put his life at stake. This life is much too tough for him after all.

The world is not a kind place. Never has and never will be.

_Colonello's POV_

"It's already two months passed and you have shown no progress Colonello. You have got zero potential. It would be better if you gave up right now," Lal told me one day after my usual twenty mile run.

Her words were like a stake driven through my heart. What did it mean? Zero potential? I don't believe this… I can't accept this! I'll work harder, I've been working so hard and as much as I hate to admit she was right. There had been no progress at all. What did I do wrong? Where did I go wrong?

"No!" I told her, desperate. "I won't give up! I can't… I've been trying so hard, I can't give up now… give me another chance. We still have a month," I pleaded, on my knees nearly to tears. I just cannot accept the reality.

"No."

Her cold reply made the tears I was holding back fall as she turned her back to me and walked away.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

_Lal's POV_

I did not go back to see the recruit. He should have left the camp grounds by now. I sighed. It was a waste really. I had thought he might be the one rare unpolished gem I could personally groom to be a human and not a killing machine. He was really opinionated and I liked that. However, being strong in character would not be enough to match up to the other elites killing machines in camp. They only obey orders and follow the higher instructions. I am considered nothing but a low rank in here to train those machines. I hated my job.

As a Major in the army ranks and being the only female of such rankings I am hated by many others. The new guys in the elite force were not given rankings and commonly were referred to as recruits. I don't usually remember them or their names. It felt all the same to me. However, Colonello was different from the rest. He had this personality which would charm anyone and he was popular with the other normal soldiers but because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, he was treated as trash in the elite. It would be better for him to leave.

I walked past the forest that I trained him for the past two months unknowingly. It must have been so natural for me to come here since it became part of my routine. I sighed. Old habits die hard. I'll have to get used to not seeing him anymore.

To my surprise I heard a muffled shout from somewhere further from here. It was familiar and if my hunch was correct it sounded like the blonde man who was supposed to have left.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

I entered a clearing near the stream and saw the very man who was supposed to have left the camp grounds. Well, technically he did leave the army camp grounds. He was now in the deep forest that belonged to wilderness but still, it was too close to the camp and I frowned upon seeing the wounds on his body. Is this man an idiot? What is he doing in the middle of nowhere? Not even the elite soldiers would survive a night in the wild like this and this man here is busy spearing fishes. It had been at least three days since I last saw him and if he had been here all the time that would mean he was either very lucky or hiding his progress from when we trained.

"Recruit Colonello!" I shouted, coming out of my hiding place.

He seemed to be startled and fell into the deeper parts of the stream with a yelp. My eyes widened as I saw him getting swept away to the more dangerous part of the river downstream with rapids. Without thinking I dived in after him.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

We both ended up gasping for air madly and spluttering by the river banks. I can't believe we just survived a rapid and a waterfall. I, the great major Lal, have never done anything so dangerously stupid in my entire life! Dangerous yes, but not stupid. The fall had been a ridiculous one as well. It was a miracle that I am still gasping for air right now and not floating at the bottom of the fall.

The blonde haired idiot who got us into all this mess grinned stupidly at me. I just mustered the deadliest glare I could give him with the current energy I had.

_Flashback of the fall…_

"_Colonello!" I shouted before jumping in after him. He had lost footing and plunged into the deeper parts of the stream. I had to pull him from beneath the water but the stream had dragged us into the middle of a wide river. The current was strong but not yet deadly. I knew I had to pull us to safety if I did not want us to get caught in the rapids down the river. _

_We swam back to the bank and that should have been the end but it was not. I noticed my army head band was missing and sighed in frustration. Colonello had asked me what the matter was and I just told him. I had not thought for him to take it seriously and jump back into the river to retrieve the band. _

_The most idiotic thing was that the blonde moron found my head band but when he was making his way back, he had a cramp from the icy waters and went beneath the waters once again. _

_Despite my usual cool demeanor and logical sense of approaching danger, I threw all those to the wind when it concerned him for some reason. I did something I would never do in the past. I risked myself for another person and for a stupid reason as well._

_It was hard to swim with his weight dragging me down and soon as I dreaded, we got caught in the rapids. _

_It had been rough and I somehow managed to survive through them all. As much as I got banged up and all it was not the most horrible thing at that point of time. I actually had to pray for a miracle with what came after the rapids. No, the water was very calm after that although it was slightly faster flowing. _

_To my horror I realized that we were headed straight for the waterfalls and for the first time in so many years I screamed. I actually screamed and it wasn't orders. It was a scream like a girl._

_End of Flashback…_

I had no idea what happened after that because it had mostly been screaming till my throat hurts then me swallowing lots of water and a strong grip on my waist dragging me out from the water and a body collapsing heavily beside me.

Only when I had gotten over my initial shock and gotten some of my brain cells working did I shout at the grinning idiot. He put his hands up in a surrendering fashion while laughing. I was beyond pissed. I was livid and if I could I would be strangling him right now. Unfortunately I was shivering like crazy as the water had been too damn bloody cold! He laughed and showed me the head band. The cursed head band which caused all these… I would have it burned!

Before I could rip the head band to shreds he took it and placed it on his head. "How do I look?"

I wanted to laugh at the helplessness of the situation. We were in the middle of nowhere with no help and he was asking if the head band looked good on him. "Whatever, you can keep it," I told him grimly. Clearly today had not been a good day.

He looked at me strangely and asked why I was so glum. I kept mum. The cold was taking over me and I knew that it was most probably hyperthermia that I was experiencing. I did not want him to worry about me, I was a Major after all and I needed to be strong.

Colonello saw my shivers that I tried very hard to suppress and swept me in his arms. I protested with chattering teeth but he paid no heed. It helped warm me a little but my body was losing heat too rapidly. He knew that as well and did the very thing I did not want him to do. He stripped in front of me.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: I think I should increase the ratings to M for this story :/ any objections? No, it is not sex the next chapter. Don't worry but it is something else that might need M rating… Any opinions?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Lal screamed when Colonello stripped in front of her.

"Co..Co..Collonello! Wh-what do y-you think you are do-doing?!" Lal screamed with chattering teeth. Colonello only frowned and asked her in a dead voice "What does it look like to you?"

Before she could hurl insults at the man, she found herself being hugged very tightly by the blonde man. It was then she understood he was trying to transfer body heat so she would not freeze to death.

It took a while before Lal was able to sustain her normal body temperature and Colonello then released her. "Thank you," she whispered with a furious blush on her cheeks.

Then Colonello got up and tried to strain his clothes dry while Lal tried to stand only to fall back down to the ground with a yelp. Immediately, a clothed Colonello came rushing to her side.

"What's wrong?" he asked her, worried. Lal only blushed redder than she already was and muttered something that Colonello heard was a sprained ankle.

Without any more words, he picked her off the ground bridal style which was met with a shout of protest. Lal struggled in his arms but it was futile and she had to give up after a while. Colonello spoke nothing as he trekked his way back to his camp place in the middle of the forest further uphill.

Lal chose to remain silent throughout and wondered how the weak man managed to progress so quickly in her absence. Had she been wrong about him? Did she fail to see the hidden potential in him? No, it was not that. Colonello had shown no improvement when she trained him. Could it be that he was different from the rest of the elite?

The thought of his potential made her excited. She could see a faint beacon of hope from him and her blood burned with the thought of potential. However, to test her theory, she will need to observe the man and relook through her training regime. He may have been special after all.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

For the next few days after the incident, Lal started to follow Colonello secretly to observe his growth and training. She had initially been disappointed when she saw Colonello doing the daily routine of hunting and obstacle course. Then one day she witnessed something different from the ordinary.

She followed Colonello out of the ordinary obstacle path that he would take. Then he suddenly disappeared behind a bush. Lal panicked when she could not find him and picked up pace. However, she did not expect to be caught in a trap that was a camouflage.

"Who are you?" Colonello demanded angrily. Lal struggled and yelled for him to put her down. He seemed shocked but then did as she demanded. Once out of the net trap, Lal asked Colonello "When did you know I was following?"

Colonello seemed to think deep before answering, "A few days back. I decided that the presence was not harmful but it was annoying. I couldn't do the usual training with someone following. I thought if I did boring things the person might go away but I was wrong. I never expected it to be you though Major."

Lal felt a faint blush creeping up her cheeks and fought to keep cool. "So what do you usually do for training?"

Colonello flashed a wide grin and said "How about you follow me? I'll show you."

Raising an elegant eye brow, Lal followed the blonde who already disappeared in the sea of green. She got up and followed.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal screamed as she hung on the edge of the cliff. Colonello was busy pulling her up from the edge and Lal swore if any more of these surprises happened she was not going to live.

Once calm enough, Lal shouted into Colonello's ear "You IDIOT!"

Colonello merely laughed care freely at that, making Lal speechless for the first time. She could not understand how someone could not treat his own life seriously. He could have died trying to save her back then yet he did it without a shred of hesitation and at ease too. It was either he was brave or that he truly was an idiot to know not about death.

Too many years fighting on the battlefield had made Lal cautious about death. She had lost too much and came too far to give up anyone to the cruel God. She swore to teach those entrusted to her a way to survive on the actual battlefield. They were young after all and life was bright for them. Colonello however, came with a look of death in his eyes and it was fearless. Lal was enticed by that very look when he risked his life.

"There's no way I'm attracted to that!" Lal mentally screeched. Colonello merely gave her a puzzled look at her mental turmoil.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. Lal glared at him while weighing her options. She then resolved herself to ask, "Do you not fear death?"

The question seemed to have taken Colonello genuinely by surprised. He laughed after a while. Lal waited for an answer. Seeing that the female Major was serious, Colonello looked away. He frowned and his lips were pressed into a thin line. Lal waited for his answer still.

"There is nothing left to lose."

Lal held her breath at that answer. Somehow she understood his pain. It happened to her as well. The army made all men like this in the end. A life with the army was worse off compared to death. Having to sacrifice people whom you referred to as a friend because of some order, it was that kind of pain that turn many sane men mad. To have gone through something similar, perhaps that was why Colonello seemed different.

"I can sympathize with you," Lal began but Colonello cut her off by saying "No. You don't understand at all."

Lal paused. Colonello continued, "I had to kill my own friend."

Lal's eyes widened in shock, she realized that this man before her had a darker past than herself. Lal wanted to ask for more information but Colonello came back with that bright smile again and rambled on about some other less important things that Lal no longer paid attention to. Her mind was only focused on one thing. What happened to this man's past?

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: I hope this is good… I find this so much easier to write when compared to the 1869 fic that I recently finished ^^ Updates I know are really irregular because of my timing for school and all. I think I'm going to quit school so I don't really care about anything anymore. I can't care. It's too tiresome. Review please if you think this is good ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_Lal's POV_

I needed more information about this man. What kind of past did he have and why was he able to improve when he did not follow my training regime? What was he hiding? I'm positive there was more than meets the eye. Only recently the General had been annoying. He had asked me to design a special operation to assess the new elite troops. This meant lesser time for me to find out about Colonello. Not to mention Reborn that sly bastard is going to start something huge in the underworld again. Luce had been contacting me saying that there will be a possibility of us working together. I don't even know those people and yet I'm involved, the irony indeed.

I had gotten a lead recently from Reborn about Colonello although it did cost me a fortune. Trusting Reborn to get me information is not cheap when it involved a certain greedy illusionist. Hell, I don't even know if that person is a male or a female not that I care about it.

I made my way down to the secret archive that only authorized personnel were allowed. Luckily I had received the pass from the General that allowed me access to the database. As much as I dislike that old coot, I must thank him for making my job a lot easier. I just needed information about the mission in Somalia. I had heard that the raid on the fugitive and pirates was a failure because of a group of rebels that bribed someone in the army. Colonello had been part of that operation. Nothing more was known about the traitor because there had been so many versions and nobody believed any of them. According to Colonello he had to kill his friend. Was his friend the traitor said?

I finally found the records of the mission. It was known as operation 'Neptune' with only seven men on the mission. One of them involved happened to be the General himself who was only a captain back then. All the others were hired killers with the help of a huge mafia family known as Vongola. It sounded familiar to me and I would have to ask Reborn about these. After all, that man was a number one hit man in the mafia world. His source of information has got to be the most accurate version.

When I wanted to dig further, I was prompted with the password approval for some restricted areas in the database. This is going to take some time. I saved everything into the small thumb drive that I had and left the office.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

_Normal POV_

A soldier hurried down to the General's room. He knocked on the door twice and a muffled "Come in" was heard.

The soldier entered swiftly and shut the door promptly.

"What is it?" the General asked, a little annoyed at being interrupted.

"Sir," the soldier reported. "There was a record of someone trying a=to access some restricted database without permission."

The General tensed up visibly. "Trace that terminal down and report to me immediately!" he barked.

The soldier saluted "Sir, yes sir!" then abruptly turned on his heel and left.

Back in the room the General frowned. Someone was going to cause a scene very soon. He was going to see the end of that person.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Meanwhile, Reborn was having trouble. "Should I contact him?" he asked Leon who only stared.

Sighing, he reached out to sip his espresso when a phone call came. Reborn frowned at the number reflected and picked up the call hesitantly.

"I know that you need my help," the voice over the line said. Reborn's lips pursed into a thin firm line, this was going to be troublesome.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal waited patiently for Colonello to turn up at the agreed place. She was ready to implement the new schedule and try out a different training style on the blonde man. He had agreed to it and she was looking forward to see his progress.

When she arrived at the clearing, the man was already there, warmed up with a good amount of sweat on his body. She smiled inwardly at his diligence. With a different set of training that she had never tried on any of her students, she was unsure about the effects and outcome.

Usually she would force the limits of the body of her student to focus on the mind and break their resistance. However now she was going to try pushing past the limits of her student. She was going to put him through real life situations that may result in his death if he failed to make the passing mark. Colonello had agreed to it immediately and Lal had second thoughts about safety but Colonello assured her that he was willing to die trying if it meant he could improve. She then decided to steel her heart and do as promised.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Go Colonello! If you stop you are a dead man!" Lal shouted from the top of the hill. She was watching Colonello dodge her bullets. Never had she missed an aim in her life. She was deliberately missing him by inches to keep him agile but somehow it did not work to improve at all. Then Lal decided perhaps it would be good to take a break.

"Stop!" she shouted for Colonello to come back and Colonello picked himself off the ground. He sat down beside her to rest and drank water while Lal polished her gun.

There was a faint rustling from the trees which Lal did not notice, too intent on cleaning her gun. Colonello however, sensed it and tensed up.

Suddenly a tiger dashed out from behind a bush and headed for Lal. Colonello shouted for her but it was going to be too late when she reacts. Without thinking, Colonello threw his dagger from the boot side and hit the tiger squarely on the shoulder blade causing the beast to roar in agony. The tiger was enraged and turned its attention to Colonello who could only run for his life. The tiger chased him fast and Colonello was running at a speed no human could ever achieve. Just before he could evade the tiger's pounce, a gunshot echoed.

He crouched low as the tiger flew above him down a steep slope and disappeared from sight. Lal had shot the tiger in the head effectively killing the beast. Colonello trudged back and Lal immediately hit him on the head with the butt of her rifle.

"What did you think you were doing? You could have gotten killed!" Lal shouted. Colonello gave her a sheepish grin throughout her entire lecture.

He interrupted her by saying "But I didn't die! We both lived… what's the fuss?"

Lal wanted to retort more but was at a loss of words when he said that. It was a fact after all. Why was she so angry still? This man's act of bravado nearly gotten himself killed yet he was still smiling as if nothing happened and asked what the big deal was. Lal lost it. She did not know what to say any longer.

"Then how come you couldn't run as fast as just now when you were chased by the tiger? I shot at you with bullets but it did not work. You got chased by a tiger and you improved. What was the difference?"

Colonello shrugged and told her "Because I didn't feel any form of death coming from you? When the tiger chased me I knew it was going to kill me so I acted on instinct. However it was different when you shot at me. I knew you were going to miss those shots somehow so I couldn't find it in me to run as if my life depended on it. How should I say, I find that you are too kind on me. Maybe you should really try killing me instead of worrying about my welfare. I should improve then."

Lal took everything he said in. "But to really kill you for training? It's absurd…" she whispered.

Colonello smiled, "It won't be easy to kill me. Trust me on this one Major."

Lal blushed. If he said it would work then she would have to trust him, right? Her method had not worked after all.

"I'll take your suggestion recruit so be prepared I won't let you live the next time."

"Sure major, I don't really mind if I'm dying because of you."

Lal blushed heavily but left nevertheless.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Somewhere in a nearby town, a certain man watched them through his binoculars. "Hm? Is that not the same experiment subject? This will be interesting."

**To be continued…**

**Author's Note: Any guesses for the man in the last part? xD I'm not telling… wait for the update and review please~ I find it a lot easier to write Col x Lal. My fingers just know where to go and they fly all over the place when I type. I guess I really like this pairing especially Lal because she's so Tsundere~ So cute… really. I think this has got to be one of the best couples. (Do you consider Xanxus x Squalo a couple because I love that pair :D)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Hurry up! Four minutes and thirty-eight seconds!" Lal shouted. Colonello crawled under the thickets and dodged another sniper bullet by inches from his head. Lal had gotten serious on killing him or so he felt. She still refused to go all out on him. Nevertheless, there was finally some progress although excruciatingly slow.

The moment a half dead and somewhat mortally wounded Colonello reached the top of the cliff, Lal slapped him hard, making his lips split. "You're slow!" she shouted. "500 crunches and 200 push ups now! If you don't complete them no lunch."

Colonello smiled and got to work on those. In less than half an hour he had completed those and joined Lal who was barbequing some kind of strange river fish she caught over a poorly made camp fire.

Colonello looked mildly surprised at her catch and commented "Wow, those are some nice monitor lizards you are cooking."

Lal stared at him wide eyed. "Wh-what? Come again?"

Colonello gave her a surprised look and stuttered "Huh? E-eh? You mean you didn't know?!"

A shriek echoed throughout the forest and some birds flew off.

Colonello laughed and took a bite into one of the monitor lizards Lal cooked. It was huge and he happily munched away as lal poked hers with a stick.

"Um, major Lal… I think it's dead so you can eat it already."

Lal glared at him, "How can I eat this? It's monitor lizard!"

Colonello shrugged and said "Anything that moves here is food, I'm in the wild after all."

Lal gave a sigh and tried a tiny bite of the monitor lizard. She was surprised for a moment before coughing a little. "I suppose it's alright to eat but if anything happens to me I'm holding you responsible!"

Colonello laughed again and they both ate while Colonello tried to crack some lewd jokes resulting in a few more kicks and punches from Lal.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Back at the headquarters, the General plotted and thought deeply, a photo of Lal and Colonello in his hand. He frowned.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Reborn sipped his espresso then tickled a bored Leon. Verde looked unamused while polishing his glasses.

Luce entered the room, a smile on her face. "Sorry, did you wait for a long time?" Both Reborn and Verde muttered something but were cut short when Mammon appeared.

"Muu~ I expect the money to be ready by now."

Luce laughed, "Of course, now will you tell us more about the Operation Neptune?"

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Night falls once again and while majority of the people at the camp are sleeping, Lal found herself going through the private archive and records of Operation Neptune with the help from Verde, a genius who hacked through the system.

Mammon was tasked to keep an eye on the General and on Colonello for any suspicious movements or leads to the past of the traitor while Reborn and Luce busied themselves with the underworld affairs.

Suddenly, a gasp escaped from Lal's mouth. The article that Lal was reading revealed, _"After the escape of the traitor who had murdered his friends, the sole survivor from Neptune was Robert Cruiser, sergeant at that time…"_

Before Lal could read any further about it, footsteps were heard and Lal quickly saved the document in the small thumb drive before escaping through the window. As soon as the window closed, the door opened and the guard who came for night rounds saw nothing suspicious with everything in order. He closed the door and left.

No sooner did the night guard leave another man appear. He was masked and made his way around the room stealthily. Smiling a little behind the mask, he collected the required evidence and left like the wind.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

It was the middle of the night that Lal slapped Colonello awake demanding an answer about the Operation Neptune. With a resigned sigh Colonello begin to reveal his version of the truth.

At the same time, the General smirked and told a masked person "Good work. I expect you to keep a close eye on that woman. It may bring us more trouble than we can handle."

The masked man replied, "Yes sir!"

To Be continued…

**Author's Note: I know this chapter is really short but my writing break was too long and I would need time to get started back again, not to mention I am currently addicted to One Piece. I started not too long ago and intend to finish watching all 500+ episodes.. *sigh* How do I complete it?**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"What is the meaning of this?! I thought you killed the traitor! You… you were the traitor weren't you?" Lal fumed.

Colonello sighed. "It's not as easy as you think it is. If I truly was the traitor why would I still return to a place right beneath the government's nose? I'm not a masochist and I do not intend to die."

Lal thought for a moment before calming down a little. "Explain."

Colonello sighed again and began reminiscing…

_Operation Neptune is a secret mission with the government and the underworld to raid the fugitives and pirates in Somalia for their possession of huge quantities of fire arms and drug trafficking. _

_However, the mission failed due to a member of the operation being bribed by the rebels and led to a near full scale war if not for the threat from the world government to rain missiles if they do not surrender the war._

_The cause of conflict and the person who instigated the war was unknown. Records said that there were no survivors from that mission except for the traitor whose background was unknown. The traitor was rumored and suspected to have been involved with the underworld and betrayed the government. Operation Neptune has been closed as a case as a misunderstanding between the world government and the country, Somalia. A man who was the mediator then was put to death to appease all parties. The culprit was not found and not caught. The case was soon forgotten and never spoken off again._

"… unfortunately, that was not the truth. It was what the world government wanted the people to believe. In fact, the underworld was not even involved. Among all the seven men recruited for the mission, only one was from the government. The rest were just skilled hit men who were disposable for the mission. Records would show that seven men were involved but the truth was that they had an entire army waiting and several fleets of battleships ready for action when we fall. It was all an act, an excuse to start a war. Their true aim was not the people or the drugs or the pirates. Their true aim was the land that Somalia possesses which has natural resources such as iron, oil and salt. However, the one that the government truly wished to get their hands on is Uranium."

After listening to Colonello, Lal was speechless. Hearing something that stated so differently from the military secret archive records was hard to stomach.

They sat in silence under the cover of night. It was not until a few hours passing before Lal got over the shock. Colonello had already fallen back to sleep and Lal decided against waking him up again.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

For an entire week, Colonello trained and waited for Lal but she never showed up. "Did she give up on me already? I guess so, after all it was something difficult to believe not that I'm not used to this," Colonello mumbled.

Unknown to him, a pair of watchful eyes from afar monitored his training progress.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Have you decided, Major Lal Mirch?" A scientist asked.

"Yes," Lal told him. "I want to know more about the incident, Verde."

Verde mused and adjusted his glasses before turning to the large screen and tapping a few icons to reveal an image file of people involved in the operation Neptune.

Lal frowned at the image of a man. "Isn't this the General?"

Verde laughed as a reply and told her "Wait till you listen to this…"

Lal watched as the image begin to move and the video play.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Shell shocked, Lal collapsed from the chair she was seating on with a pale face. She covered her mouth with one hand to force the urge to throw up back down.

Reborn's lips were pressed into a thin firm line at the end of the video. He had been watching from the doorway since the beginning without anyone knowing. Tipping his fedora to cover his eyes, he left in silence.

Verde was the only person who remained unaffected after the end of the video. He calmly waited for Lal to get over the initial shock and collect herself. The screen froze at the scene of a faded black after an explosion but the image of torture and death still remained vividly etched into Lal's mind. Colonello may have been the traitor but now she understood why.

Lal swore to herself "I will help to clear his name."

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Colonello looked pleasantly surprised when Lal decided to show up after one and a half weeks of disappearance. He greeted her with the usual smile but there was no sign of life in her eyes. They were dead and cold like a killer.

She took out a gun and shot at him which took him by surprise. Unable to respond quick enough, he barely managed to dodge the bullet aimed at his head and it grazed his left shoulder.

Lal reloaded the gun and told him in an icy voice, "Next time I won't miss."

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

It was nightfall by the time Lal finally left saying she was tired and Colonello had been exhausted. Her standard and his were too great a difference. He needed to grow stronger in order to attain his goal. They were not joking when they told him Lal was a demon in a woman's form in the camp. Her title as the strongest and most intelligent elite force trainer reigned true.

Colonello collapsed the moment he finished his food and drifted into a difficult slumber.

"_It isn't right… what we are doing."_

_Laughter was heard and a man said "It doesn't matter. What matters now is that we will hold the ultimate power in military strength to control the world. As for you, we would do you a favor and spare you the nightmare to come. You will no longer be needed since we have successfully accomplished what we came for and you have performed your purpose. Now it is time to dispose of you…'_

Colonello woke up in sweat and the feel of fingers around his neck remained painfully fresh in his tormented mind. It had been a few years back but the incident had never truly left him alone.

"Which reminds me why I'm here now…" Colonello sighed to no one in particular. Not exactly expecting a reply, he jumped out of his skin when he heard a deep and rich baritone voice say, "Indeed."

Grabbing the nearest object to him as a weapon, Colonello spun around only to feel a gun pointing at his head from behind.

"You don't need to be so tensed. Drop whatever that is now. I came to talk."

Cautiously, Colonello put down whatever he held as a weapon at that point of time and turned around slowly. He saw a man with cigarette hanging from his lips seated comfortably on a tree's lower branch.

"You look familiar," Colonello told the man.

The man smiled and replied with a small smile, "I see you are well informed. The name is Reborn. Chaos."

"What do you want?"

Reborn's smile widened to an extent it became eerie in the silver moonlight. "The truth."

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: Sorry I took so long to update. I was watching One Piece and have completed up to the latest episode. I will focus on finishing this series then progressing onto my collection series for publication. I'm unsure if I would be contributing any more fan fictions but I would take on requests if there is any (after the series) as part of my journey to becoming a great writer **

**Thank you for all your support and please look forward to my next chapter.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Why do you want to know? I thought you would have known that I was the traitor who betrayed the operation Neptune."

Reborn looked unamused and told Colonello, "That was the side of a story by the government."

Colonello then put on his poker face and told Reborn, "Then how about the truth whereby the government started on the operation to obtain the resources to create a greater military weapon?"

Reborn smirked and cocked the gun to Colonello's head. "Don't play games with me. We both know that is not the case. What are you doing here… subject 201?"

Colonello's eyes widened and glared at the hit man. "Who are you."

Reborn smirked. "Chaos."

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal's mind was thrown into great turmoil when she saw the video. True, she knew part of the story that Colonello made told her but she had never imagined it to be so cruel. Seeing reality was not the same as how Colonello made it sound to be. She would have never known how truly inhumane they were and she was thankful that Colonello deliberately left out the gruesome parts for her.

She clenched her hand at her heart and frowned. An unknown source of anger silently built from within her like a beast awaiting the right moment to unleash its hell upon all.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

In the meantime, Colonello had a hand covering his neck. Reborn smirked.

"That was a little gift from me to you, Shamal's famous trident mosquitoes. There will be no telling what they may do. You had better not do anything funny here otherwise I might not let you live. You have only two weeks to live before the effects get worse and eventually kill you. I suggest you tell the truth if you wish not to die. Lal may not be suspicious but I still don't trust you. If you want the antidote you will tell her the truth I wish to hear."

With that said, he disappeared. Colonello was left to himself for the rest of the night.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"How was it?" Reborn asked.

"Not good," a mysterious voice told him. "They seem to have caught onto her and are planning something huge. I could not get my hands on that."

Reborn's lips tilted downwards showing displeasure. "It's sooner than I thought."

The cloaked figure merely remained silent.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

As days passed, Lal's training got more merciless. Colonello did improve as she anticipated but somehow she felt that he was slightly off focus in thoughts during training.

During one afternoon after their sparring session, Lal asked him "What is bothering you of late?"

Colonello averted his eyes and chose to remain silent. Lal frowned a little but did not probe further. Guilt wormed its way onto Colonello's heart. He looked at her apologetically when she was unaware. That look, however, did not go unnoticed by a certain invisible illusionist.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"How are they progressing?" Reborn asked.

The cloaked figure remained silent for a long time before finally speaking. "Strangely."

Reborn stopped playing with his curly sideburns and looked at the figure. "Oh? How so?" Things were getting interesting.

The cloaked figure sighed and droned, "Their relationship have developed into one of a man and a woman. I won't call them master and student anymore. Also, I have no clue as to the boy's intention."

Reborn proceeded to stroke his sideburn in thoughts. _A relationship of a man and a woman huh? Interesting…_

"Continue to observe them. Also, find out the plans of the General. I have some dealings with him and the Vongola."

The cloaked figure spoke "I will be charging extra for that."

Reborn chuckled. "Don't worry. The Vongola are wealthy people who treasure their talent, Viper."

"Hmph! They better or I will sell their information out," Viper huffed before vanishing in a cloud of smoke.

Reborn smiled to himself.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

That night when Lal left Colonello did some deep thinking under the cover of night beneath the stars.

_Flashback…_

"_So this is the child of that person?"_

"_Yes."_

"_I see. I'll make her pay for the pain I had to go through in that hell. I'll make her pain inflict onto his heart. I'll definitely get back at him no matter what it takes."_

"… _You might want to leave her out of this. Revenge will get you nowhere. You are not her match either."_

"_Even if I die, I'll die trying. Thanks anyway doctor. I'll be going."_

"_Please try to reconsider some time."_

_End of flashback…_

It was a long time ago. The incident had not bothered him much until recently. Was not taking revenge the right path to go? Had not he been working so hard till this day? Was this not what he wanted?

"Indeed, what s that that I want?" he murmured.

Closing his eyes, exhaustion finally took its toll on his body and he drifted off to a deep slumber.

Dreams of peaceful childhood days soothed out troubled thoughts. "Doctor…" he thought. "What would you have done?"

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Notes: Sorry for this short chapter as well… I suddenly decided to make it more complex than the original plan… OTL **

**I guess my strength lies in building up anguish in love to make it more bittersweet. I suppose it is a reflection of my personality since I like love like that. Fluffy love for me is too unrealistic and I couldn't do it… I felt that their love in the manga and anime was definitely very strong and unwavering. So I assumed that something must have happened before that changed both their lives. The story that I wrote, I'll Live (Col x Lal pairing rated M) was a sad one that proved a cruel reality similar to the world they exist in, this one too. I wanted to paint a history of many webs that connected them together so tightly woven that even fate could not do them part. **

**This is the concept of my story in this series and I really hope you will like it because my aim is to finish this and start on my romantic 101 collection for publications ^_^**

**Thank you for your support. Reviews are lovely~**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The shadow of a man polishing his rifle by the window on a moonless night brought back many memories of the past. The gleam of a knife flashed through the said man's mind.

_Flashback…_

"_Do I really need to do this?"_

"_You have got no choice in this matter Richards. It is a direct order from the President."_

_Richard looked at the dagger he was holding. It was a small yet light pocket sized dagger but the weight of the said weapon is something that cannot be compared to its size. _

"_Richards!" _

"_Yes I understand sir."_

_The man smiled. _

_End of flashback…_

The man stared at the polished rifle in his hand. Surely it would be over when they deemed the case close but now, the moment of peace in his life was coming to an end.

"I don't want it to end…" he thought. "I'll need to get rid of all the evidence once and for all."

Suddenly there was rapid knocking on the door and before the man could respond, it flew open to reveal a rather flustered soldier with another strange looking punk with multiple piercings on his face.

"Sir! I apologise for not being able to stop him. I told him…"

The man put away the rifle and told the soldier to leave them.

After the door closed, the strange man in piercings spoke. "Mr. General…"

The man who had been polishing the rifle earlier merely sighed. "What is it now Skull?"

The man in piercings smiled and sauntered over to the table and dropped a small brown envelope. "I thought you might find this interesting."

The said General frowned but opened it all the same. In it contained a single earring made of gold and clear crystal.

"What is the meaning of this?" the General demanded.

Skull merely laughed and teased, "Richie dear, do you not find this familiar?"

By now the General was fuming and his face was exceedingly red. Skull dangled the earring in front of him while observing the General's reaction.

Skull suddenly turned his expression to a serious one. "I have done as you asked. Now my men and I will no longer have anything to do with you. Pull anything funny and you know what will happen to the owner of this earring."

With that said, Skull left the room with a rather troubled General behind.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Is the job done?"

"Of course! Who do you think I am? I am the great Skull-sama! Hahaha…"

Reborn ignored the man and walked away.

"O-oi! Don't ignore me when I am talking to you idiot Reborn!"

Reborn turned around quicker than the eye can blink with a gun pointed at Skull. "What did you say lackey?"

Skull squeaked and apologized quickly. Reborn merely smirked and walked away while muttering "I thought so," leaving behind a spluttering Skull.

"At least now things start getting interesting. What would you do, Lal Mirch?" Reborn thought.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal was training with Colonello again. They had started early in the morning and were still at it even though it was past midnight. It went on for three days straight with just brief breaks for them to catch their breaths and go for a quick bite before they are at it again.

Verde who had been monitoring them from afar had long fallen asleep from exhaustion and Viper had disappeared off to somewhere unknown. Reborn was the only one observing the changes as they sparred.

Colonello's defenses were strong when they sparred physically but his mental defenses were breaking down bit by bit as they go along. Lal on the other hand was the total opposite. Her body was breaking down as the time dragged by but her mind and her spirit was burning even brighter than before. It was only after the third sunrise that they both fell onto the ground, completely worn and exhausted.

They slept for a good twelve hours straight and Colonello was the first to awake in the middle of the night. By then, Reborn had left and Viper had returned. Verde was still deep in slumber in his hiding place.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

When Lal woke up she saw Colonello by a fire and smelled something good. "Hungry?" Colonello asked and Lal nodded.

He then offered her some fish he caught with a few barbequed mushrooms. She accepted it gratefully and they ate in silence. The fire crackled and set a comfortable atmosphere in the peaceful forest.

After a satisfying meal, the both of them took turns to wash up.

While Lal was away, Reborn appeared and Colonello sighed. "What is it?"

Reborn smiled inwardly. "You know what I want."

Colonello was quiet for a few moments before asking, "Who told you about subject 201?"

Reborn shrugged and nonchalantly replied "A scientist they call the second Da Vinci."

Colonello nodded dumbly. It was to be expected.

"The truth," he began which Reborn pricked his ears to listen carefully. "The truth is that I wanted to take revenge on the General through his daughter. However I don't think I want to now. I don't know what else to do."

After heating his confession Reborn barked a laughter which confused Colonello. "In that case all you had to do was tell someone. I have a way for you to extract your revenge if you are willing to work with me."

Colonello's eyes lit with new flame. "What do I have to do?"

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: I know I am terrible! I keep on stopping at the worst place possible… anyway can you guess what's going on because I myself am rather confused with what's going on in here xD**

**Haha! A surprise ending of course, deviating from the original fluffy intention. I want to make Lal cry before I end the story and I want to break Colonello's heart once before they become the ultimate couple. I want to make one character die in here too before this series comes to an end and I think a little bit of Luce x Reborn would be nice **

**Any suggestions feel free to inbox me and reviews are always lovely to read :3 Thank you for supporting me!**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Lal was having a bath in the stream when she suddenly sensed an unknown presence.

Alarmed, she shot out of the water and spotted a hooded figure at the other side of the bank. She heaved a huge sigh of relief and mused "What are you doing here, Viper? I didn't know you had such interest."

Viper scoffed and told her "As if! I only came to inform you of some changes."

"Changes?"

Viper nodded. The next question asked took Lal by surprised.

"What has it got to do with you?" Lal asked.

Viper shrugged and said something along the line of curiosity.

Lal did not answer but looked down. The evident blush on her cheeks telling everything. Viper noted this down mentally and then went straight to the point. "Be careful of that man. He may not be what you think he is. Love is an illusion, just like everything else. The only thing real is money. Don't forget that."

Before Lal could respond, Viper vanished in a trail of mist. Lal was left to ponder over the illusionist's words.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's note: Sorry I had to write this… It made me laugh to read Mammon's words here because it really sounded like something Mammon would say xDD. Okay, back to the story and please don't hate me for this…**

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Why did you give me the antidote? I didn't tell her."

Reborn smirked and told him "If you told her I would not be able to give the antidote to you. You would have died by her knife"

Colonello shuddered a little at that thought making Reborn's smirk wider and more devilish.

"Did anyone ever tell you how sadistic you are?" Colonello asked.

"Yes and I'm proud of it."

Colonello looked a little uneasy but chose to say nothing.

Reborn handed him a small device and told Colonello to keep it close to him so that he could be contacted for more details on the collaboration.

Not long after Reborn left, Lal returned and Colonello went to wash up.

Both of them were doing their own thinking about what they had known, much to the amusement of a hidden third party.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Verde you bastard…" Reborn hissed.

Viper calmly counted the money while Skull was busy laughing his head off until Reborn shot at him.

Verde was sitting at his computer desk calmly while ignoring the chaos happening. He told Reborn, "I didn't do anything to harm and kill anyone. I was merely conducting human psychological research and they happened to be the nest experimental subjects I came across."

"Quit messing with people!" Reborn scolded. Verde shrugged.

"I could stop messing with them if you allow me to use you and Luce as subjects."

Reborn grabbed Verde's lab coat and brought him close to his face. "Find someone else other than Lal and Colonello and if you ever dare to mess with Luce in any way I assure you will be put on my personal hit list."

Verde still remained unfazed by Reborn's threat while Skull cowered. "Just confess to her already. It's so painfully obvious," Verde rolled his eyes.

Reborn threw him hard and Verde landed on the ground searching for his glasses. Reborn took this opportunity to walk away.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal was too engrossed in thinking through Viper's words and was rudely shocked out of her thoughts when someone in the cafeteria poured cold water on her. Lal yelped and a soldier rapidly apologized. Annoyed, Lal left the cafeteria to take a shower. Colonello had asked to commence training in the night and so while she was not training some robotic elite she was free.

When Lal got out of the shower she decided to head to the special room. It had always been a favorite place of hers, snipers just felt so natural in her arms.

However, before she had the chance to reach the room, one of the military admin personnel came running towards her. "Major Lal! Major Lal!"

Lal sighed and followed the man after he blabbered on about something from the General. "What more does the old man want?" She asked herself.

Once in the General's study, Lal was left alone. She took a look around before the General entered the room.

They both sat down in silence before the General spoke, "Lal, do you know why I called you here for?"

Lal kept silent and waited for the old man to continue. The General merely sighed. He pushed a brown envelope to her and motioned for her to open it. Lal did so cautiously and tried to remain calm when she saw the contents.

"I just wanted to let you know," the General said "about the truth of the incident. I'm sure you may have heard the truth from another person's perspective and what I say may not make any more of a difference. However, I just hope that you will hear me out at the very least."

Lal slowly nodded and the General spoke…

"_Operation Neptune was a mission to retrieve rare minerals known as Uranium for a research development for a greater military power. At that point of time they were researching on human bio-chemical weapons, genetically altered super humans instead of cyborgs._

_I had been part of the secret information society to infiltrate the military background and hunt for suitable candidates for the experiment. There were at least a few hundred candidates from the military and of the many that were chosen, only a few stood out. The result of the research had six men genetically modified with unique talents each. Of the many hundreds, six men survived and were let free. Operation Neptune continued but was running low on their core material – Uranium. Our country does not produce enough of these minerals and so we are forced to obtain them from other sources._

_At that time Somalia was having a dispute and we as the world's justice and peace keeper took this as an advantage to infiltrate their territory and get what we needed on the pretext of helping them. The six men who were successful subject experiments from the research were called together for the first time to carry out this mission. I was tasked to oversee the entire operation and rid of them if any problems arise._

_They were people who minded their own business and do as they were told… all but one. His name was Colonello. He was the one who pulled the trigger first and killed all the members of the operation including me. However I survived. I know he is back to get revenge but he does not necessarily know that I am still alive. He knows the creator of this project and is going after his daughter._

_The creator of this human weapon project as so we speak of is no other than Charlie Mirch, your very own father who was said to have passed away twenty years ago due to an epidemic. Colonello knows you are his daughter and is out to seek revenge on you to draw him out. That is why I have called you today, Major Lal."_

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: How is this chapter? I deliberately added some complications to this matter xD Reviews are lovely… I'm trying to finish this as fast as I can but there is a limit to how fast I can type considering more tuition jobs pouring in and the constant ringing of my cell phone -.-**

**Please look forward to my next chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Lal's eyes were still wide with shock about the news of her father.

"_The creator of this human weapon project as so we speak of is no other than Charlie Mirch, your very own father who was said to have passed away twenty years ago due to an epidemic. Colonello knows you are his daughter and is out to seek revenge on you to draw him out. That is why I have called you today, Major Lal."_

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Immediately Verde called Reborn when he heard what the General told Lal from the wired bug in the room. "Reborn, we have trouble."

Reborn scowled in contempt. He hung up on Verde and immediately went to call for Viper. Colonello looked at him puzzled but Reborn ignored him.

"Viper! I need you to come to the place now. There is a change of plans," Reborn ordered and hung up on Viper's complaints. After that he dragged Colonello away to the usual meeting place.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"She's late…" Colonello muttered. Lal had not shown up all night and it was going to be day soon. Their plan had been changed and it would require Colonello to reveal the truth of his intentions to her, which is if she turned up.

"Now what? I doubt she is going to turn up. Could it be too late already?" Viper asked Reborn.

Stubbornly, Reborn refused to answer and Viper sighed. Colonello was anxious. "I really like her, I hope she would let me explain," he whispered. Unknown to him, Reborn gave him a sympathetic glance but remained silent throughout. Verde was still as calm as ever and continued typing on his portable device.

Morning was arriving soon yet there were no signs of Lal anywhere.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Lal was cooped up in her room the entire time, her sniping practice long forgotten. The words of the General still echoed in her mind. Colonello had gotten close to her with the intention of killing her, not to mention he was a human weapon. The story of him being the traitor because of the intention of the operation seemed far less important than the fact that he wanted revenge on her father and that she was the key to it.

Lal's eyes were swollen and red from the lack of sleep and from crying her heat out. How many countless suitors had she in the past that moved her heart like this? There was practically none who could hold a candle to Colonello. Why must she fall for an enemy, much less one who wants her life? Love is blind and life is cruel. The Gods must be laughing at her misery now. She should have known better from the very start that giving her heart to someone was not a wise decision. However, it was too late for all this. Her heart lay on the floor, shattered to millions of pieces with no solution to put it back together again. It would never be the same again.

Lal was starving but she refused to move an inch from her room. Wallowing in self-pity and sorrow was not at all like her but Lal chose to cry it out. She cried for hours then ran out of tears only to find new reasons to cry about. The hurt and the shock of the news brought a wound to her heart and remembering the times they shared that seemed so happy was like rubbing salt into the wound when she recalled the General's words.

"_How do I look?" _Colonello's smile and the stupid headband he retrieved after falling from a waterfall replayed in her mind.

_"It won't be easy to kill me. Trust me on this one Major."_

_"Wow, those are some nice monitor lizards you are cooking."_

So many memories they shared over the past few months replayed over and over again in Lal's mind. His smile, his face, his voice his eyes, his touch, and his expressions of anger, pain, sorrow, joy and teasing…

More tears invaded the already puffy eyes and the sheets that were barely dry began to absorb water once more as Lal cried. Her heart felt as if it was torn in two with the decision to trust and believe in Colonello and the other to kill him and rid of him logically.

Her hand tightened around the hilt of a combat knife.

"_Kill him… erase his existence from your heart. Make him pay for the hurt you go through."_

Yet another voice whispered, _"Believe in the man you have chosen to love, he will not betray you, you should give him a chance to explain. There must be a reason behind."_

"_Fool! Men are creatures who are selfish! They should not be forgiven and taken lightly. Get rid of him before it is too late for you to realise. Dump him before he can dump you!"_

"_Remember those times where he was unguarded around you! He even revealed his darker past without hiding anything you wanted to know! You had gone too far to assume everything on your own. He had done no wrong."_

"_If he was true he would have confessed and told you everything! Those were carefully planned and conceived lies he was feeding you to gain your trust. He was planning to betray you! Do not be fooled by his charms!"_

The internal conflict went on so long in Lal's head it drove her mad. The grip on the combat knife never relinquished and with the madness in her mind going on, Lal gave into frustrations. A strangled scream escaped from her lips and the tears that flowed from her eyes were crimson.

A flash of silver followed by scarlet sprays froze time for a moment. Lal's scream lasted for a split second of an eternity before reality tumbled down on her once more.

A crazed laughter resounded throughout the room as she slowly left the premises to a forest with a trail of ruby liquid behind.

"Colonello…" she whispered to the wind.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

**Author's Note: *shivers* It felt so creepy to be writing this in the middle of the night. I could hardly sleep after that. It's chilling for me to be writing something so dramatic and starved with desperation. Anyway, someone asked about Mammon's gender here. I would continue to make Mammon genderless unless Akira Amano makes a public press about it.**

**The story would be coming to a conclusion in a few more chapters so stay tuned :3 Thank you for all your wonderful support. It really inspired and kept me going. I see that my other Col x Lal story "I'll Live" is well received but I hope there won't be comparisons between this and that…**

**Please review! Thanks *bow* **


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Nervousness coiled itself around Colonello's heart like a snake, making it impossible for him to breathe properly. Though calm on the outer façade, Viper was actually a little anxious as to what would happen next. From the information sources, Lal was cooped up in her room the whole time crying and knowing the personality of the Major, crying would not be the only thing she was going to do. It was either a drastic action taken against Colonello or a drastic action taken against the General. Right now, the General had the upper hand and the chances of Lal listening to Colonello were close to zero. Reborn had already told Colonello that the possibilities of having Lal to listen to him were close to zero and that they should start their raid on the camp. Colonello had been the one to insist on waiting and believing in Lal that she would turn up and hear him out. Unable to reason with a love sick fool, Reborn was left with no choice but to get Verde proceed with the second part of the plan to gather support for their escape after the major hit mission he was sent to complete. Colonello and Lal's love affair happened to be caught up in the middle of his mess and the damned General was too cunning for his own good.

Dawn was almost over and the first rays of morning sun were beginning to be visible. Reborn nearly let out an exasperated sigh when a small figure from afar approached them at alarming speed. The killer intent was insane but Colonello, too blinded by happiness at her appearance, went forth at top speed to meet her before Reborn could say anything. Reborn cursed. The fool was going to die.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"I trust that you will give us the necessary support?"

"Yes, arrangements have been made by the courtesy of Vongola Nono. Please help us tell Reborn that the moment he calls us we would be there to assist him in the hit."

"I will tell him that," Verde said and turned back to the direction of his base. Things were progressing smoothly on his end.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

"Hm? Is that so? I see, if it is Reborn then there would not be a problem," Luce smiled as she listened to what the other person was saying and nodded. "I understand. I will do what I can."

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"Skull-sama… why are we doing this again?" a masked man asked.

"Shut up! It's all Reborn that bastard's fault… reducing me to do this kind of thing…" Skull muttered and cursed while planting explosives at the perimeter of the camp. It was a tedious job but he was not able to refuse in fear of incurring the famous hit man's wrath.

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"Viper! Separate them!" Reborn yelled.

"Muu~ Why should I?" Viper droned.

"I'm paying you aren't I? Moreover, we don't have any other illusionist."

Viper huffed and cast an illusion over the both of them. Colonello ran of course chasing after 'Lal' while Lal fought with an imaginary Colonello. "This should do for now," Viper said and Reborn heaved a small sigh of relief.

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A small scream was heard and Reborn readied his gun. Viper prepared a powerful illusion but both dropped their guard as a man in suit and a pregnant Luce tumbled in view.

"Boss! I'm so sorry I lost my footing are you and the princess still alright?" the panicked subordinate asked.

Luce smiled weakly and panted heavily with a weak wave as an assurance which did not help to cease her subordinate's fussing. Reborn twitched in irritation at how he was being ignored and decided to make his presence known by clearing his throat a little.

Luce turned her attention to him which made him slightly pleased with himself on the inside.

"I need you to help me settle her down. She's had some really bad damage to her heart because of that blonde idiot. I need her to calm down and listen to him first. I'm going to fetch that idiot before things get worse," he told Luce.

Luce smiled and went to get Lal while Reborn headed into the opposite direction to find Colonello.

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It took nearly half a day to knock some sense back to Colonello and half a day to get Lal to calm down and not try to kill Colonello every time she sees him. Finally the seven of them settled down in a decent manner in Verde's small base to discuss the next step of the plan.

"I've contacted the Vongola and they are ready anytime you give them the cue. Nono has personally agreed to this and we are set for a fall back once the target is eliminated," Verde reported indifferently.

Skull proudly declared his job to plant the mines done flawlessly only to be ignored by Reborn and nearly shot for being a nuisance.

Viper remained silent throughout the entire confession by Colonello while Lal tried to not break down. Lal then told her version of story from what she heard the General said and Colonello agreed on some of what he told her. However, he firmly denied the fact that he was only using her until Lal slapped him for 'being too annoying'.

Once they were done with clearing the misunderstanding, Luce was about to bring out the roles of everyone in the mission when Lal suddenly collapsed. Viper quickly inspected for signs of injury and got a shock when a deep gash was discovered on Lal's arm. She was also having a high fever which had been induced by infection of the wound. Verde was ordered to treat her while Reborn got Luce to continue the plan for the operation.

Colonello was assigned the duty to cause a distraction with Skull while Reborn would go in and find the General to finish him off. Luce was to stay behind with Lal and Verde was to contact the Vongola the moment he receives news from Viper that the mission is complete. Viper would be going in to collect confidential information of the military weapon project while there is a distraction. Everyone was clear with their objectives and the operation was to be commenced at the stroke of midnight.

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**Author's Note: Okay, I think the next chapter would be the last one… I realized that many of the series stories I have ends around 12 chapters. For some reason it has become a favorite number for me in series because I don't do many series as compared to one shots. Today is White Day and I was wondering why we don't celebrate it here in Singapore. It would be so fun to see guys confessing… for me. :P**

**Anyways, thank you for supporting me, I will do my best to make this series better than all the other series I had done. Have a Happy White Day!**

**Do review :3**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Everyone got to their positions and waited with bated breaths. It was two more minutes to midnight before the commencement of the operation. Already some patrol guards were beginning to prepare for a shift change. When they do, it would be the perfect opportunity to strike and create havoc. Skull was going to set off the explosion once Colonello fires a gun in the dead of the night.

One minute to the moment of chaos, a truck entered the gates of the camp. Colonello cursed. He had forgotten that every two weeks a military truck would come to drop off some weaponry. There would have to be a change of plans.

It was five minutes after midnight and yet, no sound of a gunshot could be heard. There were no screams of chaos or even the sound of footsteps. Skull was beginning to have doubts about the plan and wanted to leave his post. The only thing stopping him from doing so was the threat Reborn gave before the operation's commencement. A shudder made its way down skull's spine. There were many things he could take like bullets and punches and knives and explosions because he won't die. However, Reborn's sadism is something that was worse than dying which Skull did not want to face. It was beyond logic how the hit man would take pleasure in traumatizing innocent people's minds and his contact sources were influential enough to start the third world war. Skull had to learn the hard way when he accidentally offended the said man and was thrown to a deserted island which was barren and left to starve to death. The said island, Skull learnt after he had been rescued, belonged to this sadistic bastard called Reborn and even if he died there no one would discover him because Reborn himself had every right to do whatever he wanted on that island. Skull owed his life to this said man even though he still held a grudge against him. _"You shall be my lackey," _the smug face of the Espresso loving hit man maddened him beyond reasoning.

Before Skull could go crazy from thinking of the infuriating man, an alarm went off.

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Reborn frowned at the alarm that went off. Looks like there was going to be a change of plans after all.

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Viper looked indifferent as the alarm went off. No longer caring about the agreed plan, Viper headed straight for the military archives. Money came first and it did not matter how the job was done.

In the library, a few soldiers sat down discussing some important agenda when they spotted an intruder. Viper sighed when they pulled out their guns. It was going to be a little rough tonight.

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Colonello cursed as a bullet barely missed his head. He accidentally tripped over a trigger and set the alarm off. True, he was supposed to create a commotion and distract the main force from the archive library and the General's quarters but the weaponry truck arrived and it meant security would be tighter than ordinary nights. Colonello knew there would not be a change of shift so long the truck is still around and wanted to make a detour to the other end of the building without the truck. However, that meant passing by the storage for ammunitions. His luck ran out as he tripped over a wire and sent the alarm going. By now the whole camp base was awake and chasing after him, the said intruder.

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Verde hummed thoughtfully as the sound of the alarm blasted throughout the entire camp. It looks like the plan was taking action sooner than expected. He began to dial for the Vongola's assistance.

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Viper was frustrated after raiding the third shelf for the blueprints of the human bio-chemical weapon. The entire library was just too huge! Then an idea struck the illusionist and the said illusionist wanted to commit suicide. Of course there was an easier way…

Summoning the duplicate copies of the illusionist's self, Viper began to search the entire library. A hundred more selves were better than searching through as an individual.

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Reborn broke down the fifth door but still there were no signs of the dumb General he was supposed to kill. The mission was taking far too long for his liking and he decided to go for the easy way out.

"Chaos shot!"

The entire building crumbled to dust and Reborn watched from afar for the target he was supposed to land a hit on. If you can't catch the rat, make him come to you. Hook, line and sinker set. Satisfied with himself, Reborn smiled.

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Luce frowned at the commotion going on but did not comment on it. She was currently in a car with Lal who was still in a delirious state from the fever on the way back to her mansion.

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While all the army personnel scurried in panic at the abrupt attack to their camp base, Skull was fretting over the right cue to set the explosives off. His subordinate had suggested waiting while Skull struggled and tried to pry the lighter from his hand when the lighter fell out of their grasps, flicking open in the process and accidentally lighting the trail of gunpowder.

Unable to react in time, the explosives went off and sent Skull with his subordinates flying. The explosion stirred even more trouble within the camp and Reborn promised to kill his lackey later for a bad timing. Now he had to reset the trap he had in place for his target.

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Viper nearly danced for joy when a clue leading to the whereabouts of the blueprint revealed itself in a form of a hidden passageway behind the shelf. The search had been worthwhile and Viper knew the familiar smell of money coming from afar. It would only be a matter of time before the illusionist could get over all these trouble.

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Colonello was freaking out when he saw more than a platoon of soldiers hot in pursuit behind him. "Think fast… think fast…" he muttered to himself while mentally bashing himself up for being stupid. A sudden idea popped up in his mind and he took a sharp turn to go up the abseiling tower.

"This had better work..." he prayed.

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Leon transformed into a night binocular while Reborn tried to discern his target from the crowd. A devilish grin spread across his face when he found the person he was looking for. "Time for the main event of tonight's chaos…" he told Leon who transformed into a glider and Reborn pushed off the cliff from outside the camp.

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Once on top of the abseiling tower, Colonello took a double take on the number of people behind him then took a deep breath before leaping of the tower, unmanned.

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If anything, Reborn learnt from this mission not to trust Colonello's words too quickly. It was totally unplanned for to have Colonello falling onto his glider and sending the both of them crashing onto the ground. Also, having at least 500 men chasing the both of them from behind was something uncalled for. His mission had been simple, perform a hit on the General. Colonello only needed a small distraction to clear obstacles in his path for him to do a clean job but no, the idiot had to wake the entire camp by tripping over a wire and sending off an alarm and falling on him and getting him involved with the ridiculous chase.

"I swear I will kill you after this," Reborn growled at Colonello who was running casually beside him.

"You are welcomed," Colonello replied and took a swift turn before Reborn had time to catch him. He sighed in relive that they were no longer together. Expecting the number of pursuers to fall at their separation, he turned to look behind only to find the exact number of pursuers chasing him. Reborn cursed and a dark aura spread throughout the entire vicinity.

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Viper sparkled with glee as the precious blueprints presented themselves before Viper's eyes. The smell of money was now becoming a reality.

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Somewhere along the hallway, Reborn met Viper and they managed to escape the crazy pursuit of soldiers. Reborn went to look for the General after that while Viper headed for the agreed meeting point for the Vongola to pick them up.

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A strange looking man with head buried in the ground appeared at the agreed waiting point and Viper deadpanned. "What are you doing?"

A muffled voice said something and Viper told him, "I'll only do it for a payment of one million dollars USD."

Another muffled reply came and Viper pulled the man out using an illusionary tentacle.

The said man gasped for air and thanked the illusionist. "Don't forget the payment."

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When Reborn finally located his target, his target was already half dead with some other bodies littering the room. Colonello was pounding his fist into the target's face while rambling on like a mad man about Lal.

Reborn sighed and told Colonello to leave the target to him which he grudgingly obliged. The gunshot echoed for a moment and by the time the soldiers arrived to the room, there was only a mass of dead bodies and a thoroughly abused General shot several times in the most indecent places.

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Daybreak came and all the trouble makers during the night were fast asleep from exhaustion. The Vongola escort drove through the quiet streets in the early morning of a sleeping town. The mission was accomplished and that should have been the end of the story.

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Colonello burst into the room only to barely dodge a bullet aimed at his head.

"Colonello!" the former Major shouted, "Your reflex was still so slow! I'm going to pound all the training that you will never forget my lessons! Get ready, we will commence sparring shortly."

Luce was about to stop Lal by saying she was not recovered but Reborn stopped her. As much as he wanted to kill the man called Colonello he could not because he understood entirely what he felt at that time when he nearly lost Luce to a flight of staircase when she fell and lost consciousness for a while.

Colonello still smiled and teased Lal a lot during the training. Lal might not have been in her strongest form while they sparred but clearly from anyone's view, Colonello had grown stronger.

They say that after trials and difficult times there will be a long stretch of peaceful times where people will grow stronger quickly. However, nothing is certain about the future except for those with ready promises.

The promise of love is something that will not change no matter the circumstances.

"Lal," Colonello told her, "you are most beautiful. I love you."

"Shut up," she told him half-heartedly, a rapid blush forming on her face. Colonello laughed.

"_But truly," _he thought _"My Lal is most beautiful."_

**The End**

**Author's Note: Hope you all enjoyed it… Finally all good things come to an end **** I'm very happy to have written this… A final review to the end of this series will be lovely. Thank you everyone, I'm not sure when I'll post again but please do continue to look out for me :D**


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